Hungary's top weather forecasters fired for incorrect rain prediction

2022-08-23

Weathermen didn’t see that coming either! Hungary’s top forecasters are fired for incorrect rain prediction that caused Europe’s biggest firework show to be cancelled

The head of the National Meteorological Service, Kornelia Radics and her deputy, Gyula Horvath, were fired after an inaccurate weather forecast prediction caused the cancelation of a national holiday
National Meteorological Service faced backlash from pro-government supporters accusing them of giving misleading information about the extent of the bad weather
Critics of Orban’s government charged that the firings were politically motivated and reminiscent of Hungary’s communist past

Two senior weather experts and top officials of Hungary’s meteorological services were fired on Monday after an inaccurate weather forecast predicting extreme rain caused the postponement of fireworks on the country’s national holiday.

The incorrect weather prediction caused the cancelation of the event that marks St. Stephens Day, Hungary’s national holiday, mere hours before it was due to take place.

After the extreme rain storm did not materialize in the capital, hitting parts of eastern Hungary instead, the head of the National Meteorological Service, Kornelia Radics and her deputy, Gyula Horvath, were fired.

The colors of the Hungarian flag are illuminated on the Parliament building to celebrate and mark the national holiday

Over two million people were expected to watch the fireworks show on St. Stephens Day, as approximately 40,000 fireworks were due to be propelled from 240 points along the Danube River in Hungary’s capital of Budapest.

In a brief statement, Laszlo Palkovics, the Minister of Technology and Industry, and top cabinet member of the Hungarian Prime Minster, announced the termination of Radics and Horvath. Radics had served her position as weather service chief since 2013 and her deputy Horvath since 2016.

The minister did not provide a reason for the dismissals.

The Danube River, (pictured above) in Hungary’s capital of Budapest where two million people were expected to watch the fireworks show on St. Stephens Day

National Meteorological Service (NMS) posted a public apology to their Facebook page on Sunday, which said the ‘least likely’ outcome had happened and cited ‘a factor of uncertainty inherent in the profession,’ reported The Telegraph.

NMS faced backlash from pro-government media and supporters. Origo, an online newspaper, accused them of giving ‘misleading information about the extent of the bad weather, which misled the operation team responsible for security,’ according to The Telegraph.

However, critics of Orban’s government charged that the firings were politically motivated and reminiscent of Hungary’s communist past. ‘They couldn’t produce the desired weather, and they were fired. No, it’s not a dictatorship in Central Asia, it’s the Hungary of [ruling party] Fidesz,’ wrote liberal Andras Fekete-Gyor on Facebook.

In a statement on Tuesday, the National Meteorological Service demanded its fired leaders be reinstated, reported U.S. News.

Reaction to the planned display had already been mixed, with a petition calling for its cancellation due to the Ukraine war and Hungary’s struggling economy receiving over 200,000 signatures.

The petition reads, ‘In a country where the currency is weakening day by day while prices are rising, there is no place for such a luxurious spectacle.’

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